China, Fall 2008 SST unit

China SSTers arrive in Goshen

2 Dec 2008 22:23 EST

China SST students alighted from their bus at 6 a.m., December 2 in front of the Goshen College Union building.

The Great Wall -- and the end of a Great Semester in China

2 Dec 2008 12:00 EST

On Sunday, November 30, we spent time hiking on the Great Wall. The wall, which runs across the top of mountains that once provided a barrier from northern invaders, was originally 2,587 miles long. Not all sections remain intact, but several major portions near Beijing are open to walk. After the bus drove as far as it could, we hiked the rest of...

Visiting Beijing

2 Dec 2008 11:05 EST

We arrived in Beijing at 6:30 am on Friday morning, and encountered the morning rush hour traffic in China's sprawling capital city of 17 million people as we spent an hour on the bus going from the Beijing West Train station to our hotel on the northeast side of the city. After taking a bit of time to rest after our short night on the train, we headed...

More time in Xi'an

2 Dec 2008 09:45 EST

Knowing that we would be traveling north into cooler latitudes, we wondered what the weather would be like during this final week of travel. Happily, we had very nice weather almost all week. In fact, Wednesday, November 26, was our only cold day, with drizzle that made if feel even chillier. On that cool and damp Wednesday morning we visited the ...

Final week in China, travel to Xi'an

1 Dec 2008 22:03 EST

On Monday, November 24 the SST group left Nanchong about 2:30 pm, after several rounds of hugs and a few tears from host families saying goodbye. Our bus ride to Chengdu was delayed as we stopped to wait for missed bags and to change a flat tire, but we arrived at the Chengdu train station in time to make our 8:50 pm overnight sleeper train to Xi'...

SSTers return to Nanchong, prepare to travel

22 Nov 2008 07:37 EST

The SSTers returned to Nanchong late Friday afternoon, November 21. Members of the three service locations had not seen one another during the last five weeks, and there was a lot of excitement as they reconnected, sharing hugs and swapping stories. We had supper together at a restaurant by Beihu Park, and spent time catching up with one another. ...

After exam week Langzhong SSTers relax at a tea house

14 Nov 2008 22:57 EST

The Langzhong SSTers had a bit of a break from teaching this week, since this week Langzhong's middle school students took their two-day quarterly exams, so some regular classes were cancelled and replaced with testing periods. The Goshen students were able to see the Chinese exam process up close -- from the perspective of the teachers and parents...

Nanbu appreciates SSTers

14 Nov 2008 22:19 EST

The seven SSTers in Nanbu continue to receive praise from the teachers and administrators at the Nanbu Middle School. When Steve visited them again this week, the local coordinating teacher emphasized that the school was pleased with their teaching and that host families all like having the Goshen students living with them. Four weeks ago, the Nanbu...

New pictures from Xichong

14 Nov 2008 21:17 EST

Here are some photos of the SSTers in Xichong, taken when Steve and Rachel visited there again this week. Everyone reports enjoying living with their host families, and that the families are so hospitable. The Goshen students find it hard to believe that they have been teaching here for four weeks already. Only one week left! The SSTers all return to Nanchong on Friday evening, November 21.

Attending a Chinese wedding

14 Nov 2008 11:14 EST

Several SSTers have been invited to attend weddings during their time here. Rocio attended two weddings, along with her Nanchong host family. Below she shares some description and photos. Weddings here typically take place at noon, and might be any day of the week. The program and reception, typically held in hotel ballroom, usually last two hours, ...

SSTers in Langzhong

31 Oct 2008 04:07 EST

On October 30 we spent the day with the SSTers teaching in Langzhong, a city of 83,000 about three hours north of Nanchong. The Goshen students are teaching at the middle school's experimental teaching campus, which has a strong foreign language focus. Each Goshen teaching team works with a distinct grade level: Reuben, Pat and Alyson teach the equivalent...

SSTers in Nanbu

31 Oct 2008 03:30 EST

On Wednesday, October 29, we visited the SST group in Nanbu, a growing city of more than 200,000 about 2.5 hours north of Nanchong. The seven Goshen students here are teaching at Nanbu Middle School. Nanbu Middle School is a large campus overlooking the river, with more than a dozen buildings and an enrollment of 12,000 students. The teaching schedule...

SSTers in Xichong

31 Oct 2008 00:28 EST

On Monday, October 27 we visited the SSTers in Xichong, a smaller city northwest of Nanchong. They are teaching English at the Xichong Middle School, one of three "key schools" in the Nanchong prefecture -- meaning it is designated as an exceptional school and receives extra funding. The students faced some challenges here with the teaching schedule...

Service assignments and new host families

19 Oct 2008 08:47 EST

The SSTers have moved to their service assignments teaching English in middle schools in three smaller cities north of Nanchong. Middle schools in China encompass grades 7-12, with junior middle school including grades 7-9 and senior middle school, grades 10-12. This is the first China SST group to spend their service component teaching in county schools...

Party of thanks and farewell for our Nanchong host families

18 Oct 2008 09:34 EST

On Friday evening, October 17, the Goshen SSTers hosted a thank you party and farewell celebration for the families who have hosted them for six weeks here in Nanchong. Their language teachers and members of the university Foreign Affairs Office were also guests. We gathered at the Min Yu Hotel on the north side of Bei Hu Park at 7:00 pm for American...

Basketball with Chinese characteristics

16 Oct 2008 01:36 EST

By Isaac Journal excerpt "I was looking forward to playing basketball here. I knew that basketball was a popular sport in China with a growing fan base due to the success of Yao Ming and Sun Yue. (One Chinese student told me he watches every Lakers game on line.) And I figured it would be an activity I could join in without knowing all the language...

Sharing music

15 Oct 2008 10:11 EST

Last Friday, Oct. 10 and Tuesday, Oct 14, our afternoon cultural sessions featured traditional Chinese music. On Friday music students from China West Normal University taught the Goshen SSTers a well-known Sichuan folk song. In return, Prof. Hu Xuqing had asked if members of the SST group would prepare several songs to sing for the Chinese students...

Lunchtime routines

14 Oct 2008 01:51 EST

This blog has been inactive for more than a week! Last week Goshen College International Education Director Tom Meyers was here in Nanchong for his semester site visit, and then Tom and Steve went to Beijing to make arrangements for our group's travel at the end of November. Today is a bright sunny day here, just right for taking pictures of some...

A week of travel

4 Oct 2008 10:52 EST

During China's national holiday week -â€“ September 29 through October 3 -â€“ West China Normal University was closed and the SST group spent the week touring sites in eastern Sichuan Province. We spent Monday and Tuesday in the 2,300-year-old city of Langzhong . Although much of Langzhong is a modern, contemporary city, the historic heart...

Enjoying and participating in the arts

26 Sep 2008 04:08 EST

Two of our culture sessions this week involved traditional Chinese arts. On Wednesday afternoon we enjoyed a splendid performance of traditional and contemporary dance . Dance students from CWNU's College of Music performed seven dances, including traditional folk dances, a traditional dance reworked to contemporary techno music, a one-person political...

It's hot

24 Sep 2008 01:48 EST

It's hot here in Nanchong. Typically July and August are very warm and humid, but this year August was unusually temperate. That's why the locals â€“- and the SSTers â€“- have been surprised by this year's later September temperatures. It's running 35+ C (95+ F) this week, with very high humidity -â€“ warmer than it was here this summer...

Chinese hospitality

22 Sep 2008 11:06 EST

Journal entry, Sept. 18 By Ben (used with permission) "One thing that has struck me here is the Chinese people's propensity for hospitality. ...I mean everyone: vendors, restaurant owners, the random passerby. ...The other day I went into the store where I had earlier bought a ping-pong paddle, and the same woman was working who had sold me the...

Conversations with Chinese students

19 Sep 2008 22:29 EST

In addition to their daily interaction with host families, shop keepers and restaurateurs, SSTers have regular opportunity to interact informally with China West university students. As well, we have several more structured times for interaction. On Thursday evenings our group meets with Chinese students enrolled in Karen Beiler's oral English class...

Chinese folk music instruments

16 Sep 2008 11:43 EST

Today our afternoon lecture was also a recital. The dean of the College of Music, Professor Hu, organized an "Introduction to Chinese folk musical instruments" that featuring China West Normal University music majors. Chinese students introduced five traditional instruments: the Chinese dulcimer, Chinese zither, urheen, bamboo flute, and suona horn...

Mid-Autumn Festival

15 Sep 2008 04:15 EST

Today is Mid-Autumn Festival here in China. Somewhat akin to Thanksgiving in North America, Mid-Autumn Festival is a traditional holiday rooted in cycles of rural harvest and a time when families gather for visiting around tables piled with food. Mid-Autumn Festival coincides with the full moon of the eighth lunar month -- which is usually in the ...

SSTers practice tai-ji, attract a crowd

13 Sep 2008 06:54 EST

On Thursday afternoon, our Chinese culture lesson was a two-hour outdoor session introducing us to tÃ i jÃ quÃ¡n (sometimes written here as tai-qi, and in old style, tai-chi). Tai-ji originated in the martial arts tradition, but in modern times it is practiced more for aesthetic and exercise purposes. Traditional movements demand concentration...

Our first week of classes

12 Sep 2008 23:45 EST

During the first six weeks of SST we're studying at China West Normal University. Each day students have two-and-half hours of Chinese language study and two hours of lecture (in English) on some aspect of Chinese history, culture, literature, arts, or ecology. Typically language classes are in the morning and topical lectures are in the afternoon...

SSTers arrive in China!

7 Sep 2008 10:14 EST

After a long and tiring set of flight that included delays, a rerouting, and mad dash through the Hong Kong airport, the China SSTers arrived safely in Chengdu just after 9:00 p.m. local time, Thursday, September 4. (Remarkably, everyone's luggage also arrived!) Everyone was in good spirits and happy to be on the ground in Sichuan Province. The group...

Host families in Nanchong

6 Sep 2008 11:45 EST

Here are pictures of each SSTer with someone from their host family.

CWNU campuses come to life

2 Sep 2008 09:55 EST

The campuses of China West Normal University have come to life as students began arriving Sunday and more poured in yesterday and today. The basketball courts, swimming pool, and shaded patios are full of people playing, talking, and reconnecting. The Number 5 bus line, which connects downtown with the new campus, is crowded with young adult riders...

Getting settled in Nanchong

28 Aug 2008 21:10 EST

[www.admissions.cn...] -- We arrived in Nanchong -- our SST base for the 2008 fall semester -- on Monday, August 25, just before noon. We were met at the bus station by Professor "Sharon" Wang, an English faculty member here who was an exchange professor at Goshen two years ago, and Ms. Yang, the director of the Foreign Affairs Office of West China...

Food and friends

19 Aug 2008 11:17 EST

We love the food here in Chengdu! Sichuanese food is distinctive in China, known for its variety and spicy flavors. We've eaten at nearly a dozen different small restaurants, each of which serves common dishes and its own specialty items. Restaurants make use of fresh produce. For example, if you ask for a broccoli dish in August, the server will ...

Trip to Xi'an

19 Aug 2008 03:02 EST

On Thursday, August 14 we took an overnight train north to Xi'an , traveling with four other MPC folks. We left Chengdu about 8:30 pm and arrived in Xi'an about noon Friday. We rode in what is known as a "hard sleeper car" with six bunks per compartment. ("Soft sleepers" are somewhat more comfortable and roomier with only four beds per compartment...

Arrival in Sichuan Province

18 Aug 2008 22:43 EST

We arrived in China on August 8, as the Olympics were gearing up in Beijing. We passed through the Beijing airport on our way to Chengdu, which is our home for our first two weeks in country. Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, is a city of some 4 million. We live on the seventh floor of an apartment building across from the south entrance to...